A low-slung profile and a carport are classic Wright Usonian elements
Frank Lloyd Wright houses are not common in the East. In New York, the only house on the west bank of the Hudson designed by this country’s most famous architect is now for sale. Built circa 1960, this Usonian-style house is known as the Socrates Zaferiou House, named for its first owner. Set on two and one-half acres in New York’s Clausland Mountain Park, a 532 acre, heavily wooded park full of varied, wildlife, it has listed for $1.52 million by Richard Ellis and Brandon Wagner of Ellis Sotheby’s International Realty.
The living room is a classic representation of Wright design
Completed after the death of Frank Lloyd Wright, the house is a good example of the Usonian style the architect championed late in his life. One of nine designed by Wright in the 1950s for developer Marshall Erdman, the house encompasses more than 2,600 square-feet and has four bedrooms and two and one-half baths. The property features a walk-out basement with tall ceilings, an unusual feature in Wright’s houses. There is a carport, a workshop, eat-in kitchen, security system, patio, central air conditioning and built-in vacuum.
The kitchen shows off Wright’s signature Cherokee red flooring
It also features signature Wright elements, including an L-shaped open floor plan, a flat roof, an oversized masonry fireplace, large window expanses, wood paneling and Wright’s signature Cherokee red flooring. The home was completely restored to include all original elements of the period kitchen, full walk-out basement, patio and planting areas, and rows of glass doors and windows.
During construction of the home, Wright visited the site, but passed away in 1959, before it was completed. The project architect for the Guggenheim Museum in New York City later took over construction and finished the project.
The wooded environment is one of the appealing features of the house
“I love the property for its classic Frank Lloyd Wright style and the drama it creates,” says listing rep Richard Ellis. Sarah Anderson-Magness (also an owner) and Zaferiou, who met Wright at the site “share a passion about preserving this historic home, and a desire that future owners will respect it in the same way,” Ellis said.
“Accordingly, we’re looking for a caretaker as much as a buyer who will appreciate and preserve this home and get as much joy as living there as the original and current owners had,” Ellis added. “What a fitting setting for a Frank Lloyd Wright home — built into a hill on a 532-acre state park bringing in all the elements of nature, yet still 30 minutes to New York City.”
